NFL paid Kaepernick, Reid under $10M to settle collusion lawsuit: Report
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The NFL paid Colin Kaepernick and Eric Reid less than $10 million to settle a lawsuit that alleged the league’s 32 owners had conspired to keep them out of football due to their role in leading player national anthem protests, according to a report on Thursday.
It’s unclear how much money Kaepernick, who hasn’t played in the NFL since 2016, and Reid, who plays for the Carolina Panthers, will individually net from the agreement, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing sources familiar with the agreement. Kaepernick’s lawyers announced a settlement agreement last month, but said the terms were subject to a confidentiality agreement.
The NFL declined comment. Legal representatives for Kaepernick and Reid declined the Journal’s request for comment.
Kaepernick, who last played quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, became the first player to kneel during the national anthem in 2016 to protest police brutality. Reid, his former teammate, joined Kaepernick in the protests, which grew to include dozens of players and eventually drew the ire of President Trump.
Kaepernick and Reid alleged that league officials and owners colluded to keep both players off NFL rosters because of the protests. If the case had proceeded and Kaepernick had won, he could have been entitled to tens of millions of dollars, based on an arbitrator’s determination of his market value as an NFL quarterback.
Legal representatives for the NFL and the two players addressed the settlement in a statement last month.
"For the past several months, counsel for Mr. Kaepernick and Mr. Reid have engaged in an ongoing dialogue with representatives of the NFL. As a result of those discussions, the parties have decided to resolve the pending grievances. The resolution of this matter is subject to a confidentiality agreement so there will be no further comment by any party," the statement said.
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Reid played several games for the Panthers in 2018 and re-signed with the franchise on a 3-year deal worth $22 million this offseason. Kaepernick has yet to return to the league.